Until today I had not uttered the name Briante Weber. Admit it, you probably didn’t either, unless you’re a big VCU or NBA D-league fan, or a drunk gambler who had the Rams in a parlay, or a scout.
Well if you don’t know, now you know.
The Warriors have waived center Anderson Varejao and are expected to sign Weber to a 10-day contract.
That led a lot of fans on Twitter to exchange Weber factoids after searching the Internet. Then Weber tweeted “What’s good Dub Nation” with a muscle-flexing emoji. He was the D-League’s player of the month in January with the Sioux Falls SkyForce. At 6-2 he has a few jaw-dropping highlights and is known as a defensive demon. An ACL tear in January 2015 probably kept him from being drafted, but he’s healthy now, and has been tearing it up at both ends of the floor in recent weeks.
See? Ain’t the Internet great?
Anderson Varejao is by all accounts a fine fellow. Steve Kerr and his coaching staff loved having him around, an engaging veteran presence. Not so much on the court. 92 minutes in 50 games tells you what the coaches thought of his basketball ability at this point.
If he was in, it meant the Warriors were up by 20 points or down by 20 in the 4th quarter. Usually up by 20. The Human Victory Cigar, a flopper’s flopper. He played the game as though he was a fish thrown on a boat deck. Energetic? Yes. Effective? Rarely. A mid-season pickup in 2015-16, he saw too much time in the NBA Finals due to Andrew Bogut’s injury. This year, with at least eight centers or power forwards when healthy, the Warriors were, as LeBron might say “top-heavy as s—.” Recently coach Steve Kerr voiced concern that the Warriors would be vulnerable at guard if there’s an injury.
So they opened up a roster spot that was contributing little or nothing, and they have a maximum of two 10-day windows to decide whether Weber will help with guard depth.
The Warriors have been fine with Shaun LIvingston, Ian Clark, and Patrick McCaw coming off the bench. However, Livingston needs a break from time to time and is currently dealing with a mid-back strain. Clark has been more assertive and productive this year but is still inconsistent and McCaw is just getting his feet wet in the NBA, so it wouldn’t hurt to bolster the guard position.
What else do the Warriors need? How about a time machine to get to April and the playoffs? Otherwise they’re just biding time. Maybe they need another wing scorer off the bench or someone who can help out with defensive rebounding, but we’re talking about a 43-7 team that is ramping up for the postseason.
The most important thing is to make sure the minutes are managed and people are healthy when the time comes. Their record and their lead in the West allows them to be cautious with injured players, especially older ones, so there is no sense of urgency. They can also try out new talent and see if they can get in the mix.
In the meantime, Briante Weber is a Warrior. Learn it. Know it. Live it.
